Kellen Williams' long jumper -- Williams is pictured last season -- triggered a 9-0 outburst that created late separation and propelled Chambersburg to a 49-42 win at Central Dauphin. (The Patriot-News file, 2012)

And while Beau Gantz’s intriguing Trojans might not have been completely plugged in for 32 razor-sharp minutes Wednesday night, a strong start and a terrific finish was more than enough to net the Franklin Countians a 49-42 victory over a desperate Central Dauphin side.

Evason Ogbonna bagged a game-high 16 points — the 6-6 junior also snared nine rebounds and rejected four CD shots — while Tay Charles pocketed 10 of his 14 points in the decisive fourth quarter as the defending District 3-AAAA champs pulled away in the closing moments.

Zayd Issah racked up 15 points — nine in the second half — but it wasn’t enough as Jay Crosier’s Rams were unable to prevent taking another solid hit to their cloudy District 3-AAAA playoff hopes.

CD came in at No. 22, but only the top 20 advance to postseason play.

The Rams received an emotional lift when 6-3 Ryan Beaver (7 points, 5 rebounds) made his first appearance since a high ankle sprain forced him to the sidelines on Jan. 4. Beaver even knocked down his first shot.

Still wouldn’t be enough.

Yet when the final quarter began to unfold, Crosier’s undersized Rams (7-13, 3-9) sported a tenuous 33-31 lead over their much-bigger Mid-Penn Commonwealth Division playmates. Of course, a slow beginning forced CD to dig deep for two-plus quarters just to claw back and draw even.

"It was tough because they can attack and also shoot," Charles admitted, a sandwich and a slice of pizza in his capable hands.

"They're an all-around good team."

The 6-4 Issah was consistent throughout, using his lift and quicks to battle Chambersburg's bigs in the paint effectively. Brandon LaVia, maybe a hair over 6-0, actually topped the Rams with seven boards.

"He's so physical," Gantz said of Issah, the Penn State football verbal. "If we didn't match his physicality, we found him shooting layups."

Ogbonna had his moments, too.

His six early points helped the Trojans jump to a 14-4 advantage late in the opening quarter. Then, in the third quarter, he bagged six more points, keeping Gantz's group afloat as the Rams fought back.

"Yes he did [keep us afloat]," Gantz said.

And while effort and effective man defense brought Crosier's club back and pushed them in front for a brief stretch -- CD also found a way to compete more evenly on the glass against the longer Trojans -- these teams remained tied together as the front half of the fourth played out.

Conversely, the Trojans were having their way in the paint in the game's opening moments. Then, suddenly, they stopped trying to capitalize on their size advantage and weren't pounding it inside.

"That's what got us in trouble," Gantz said. "In the beginning of the game, we just went inside on them. Then we became a jump-shooting team. We don't do that. If we don't pound it inside, we don't shoot very well from the outside."

Regardless of the method employed, CD found a way to get back in this thing and actually led by five (33-28) following Manny Gonzalez's stickback with 2:27 remaining in the third quarter.

But Charles' conventional three-point play -- off a nice look from Williams (9 points) -- capped a 7-0 run that erased CD's momentum and gave Gantz's gritty Trojans a 35-33 lead with 2:06 gone in the final quarter.

CD continued to scrap, but once Joey Wilk’s stickback with 4:29 remaining made it 37-all the Rams suddenly encountered an untimely lull.

One that ultimately proved too much to overcome for a CD club that's rapidly running out of chances. Of course, Chambersburg's athletic man D also played a role in the Rams going cold in the closing moments.

"We play very good defense," Gantz gushed.

"We've held teams below 50 often."

Actually, when holding teams to 50 points or fewer, the Trojans improved to 10-3. CD, which shot just over 30 percent in Wednesday's loss (15-for-49), scored 33 points during its earlier visit to Chambersburg.

Still ...

Nine consecutive points — Kellen Williams' long jumper from the left wing triggered the game-changing outburst, but the last four came from Charles — had Chambersburg (13-6, 8-5) sitting on a comfortable lead.

Just 45 or so seconds remained.

With the Trojans able to use Ogbonna and 6-8 Mitch Stahl (4 blocks) on the glass -- Williams added six boards and Kyle Myers grabbed five -- Charles was able to leak out when the ball went up. Plus, the Rams had several untimely turnovers that the 5-8 senior turned into layups or foul-shooting opportunities.

Charles, in fact, was 6-for-7 from the line in the fourth quarter. Williams, Ogbonna and Myers, meanwhile, were a combined 6-for-8.

"It worked out for us," Charles said. "Also, free throws helped."

"[Tay's] underrated," Gantz said. "He is by far one of the premier guards in the league; he doesn't get the credit he deserves. In the beginning of the year, we struggled because he couldn't find his identity out there."

CD also lost sharp-shooting guard Brian Laird to fouls during that stretch. Laird finished with eight points -- six from beyond the arc -- and his absence cost the Rams their top perimeter scoring threat.

“[Losing Laird] hampered them,” Gantz said.

Moments later, the Trojans were prepping for a happy bus ride home.

CD, meanwhile, likely needs to sweep Carlisle (Friday) and Cumberland Valley (Tuesday) in order to have any chance at qualifying for postseason play. The Trojans, after entering last season’s District 3-AAAA fray as the No. 15 seed yet advancing to the final, can empathize.

But with three games to play — including a date Friday night at Harrisburg's Kimber Gym that Gantz believed already had his players distracted and looking ahead — No. 6 Chambersburg doesn’t have qualifying concerns.

"We're so much looking forward to Harrisburg," said Gantz, the Middletown native whose four-season run coaching the Cougars ended in 1993.

"It's hard to keep kids focused."

Yet when it mattered -- like down the stretch when Gantz's charges cranked out two timely runs -- the Trojans plugged themselves back in.